Ice Melts for Love

Sick of Myself

"Nooooo...!"

I woke up shouting.

Not that dream again! I sobbed. No! Why wouldn't it just leave me alone? Why did I keep dreaming of that?

I cried, wrapping my arms around my knees.

"Ellen, are you okay?"

I looked up to see my mom coming through the door. She paused, seeing my distraught face, before hastening to my side. She wrapped her arms around me and I tried to suppress my sobs.

"Was it that nightmare again?" she asked softly.

I nodded.

I saw my dad and Quinn enter the room without a sound from the corner of my eye. I buried my face deeper in my mom's neck. A sob ricocheted through my body.

"Hush now, dear." My mom rubbed my back gently and I could feel my tears subsiding. "Hush now."

It wasn't long before I felt sleepy again. Mom laid me back to my bed and tucked me in my sheets carefully. I saw her give my dad a meaningful glance. She kissed my forehead before leaving the room. Dad and Quinn followed suit and closed the door gently.

I was afraid to close my eyes. I was afraid to dream again. I prayed that I would have a dreamless sleep as I closed my eyes.

  **********  

I got to school in a sour mood, the last remnants of my nightmare still in my mind. I saw Misha waiting for me at my locker. Her bright smile quickly faded away as she comprehended my mood.

"Are you okay?" she asked in a concerned tone.

I didn't say anything.

"Did you dream about it again?"

I nodded.

"It's been years since you've last dream of it," she muttered. "You really don't know what that means?"

I sighed. It hadn't been years but just days but I didn't want to worry her. I hated being the cause of her upset.

I told her about my dream when we first became friends. I had always dreamed of roaming around a house and see a very familiar-looking door at the end of a hallway. And when I opened it that was when I wake up. I didn't know why. It was like I lost some kind of important memory. I asked my mother about it when I was young, but she would always dismiss it off, saying it was just a nightmare. But I knew there was something more to it. After all, I had uncovered some pretty shocking secrets from the past.

"I don't know." I shook my head slowly. "Maybe it's because of the scary books I've been reading."

She frowned at me and began scolding. "You really need to cut back on the horror books. You're scaring yourself."

I cocked a brow at her. She grinned sheepishly back. I sighed. Misha hasn't been modeling lately, due to her rekindled relationship with Matt. I bet her manager had gone ballistic. I saw Nate, Matt and Michael hanging outside our classroom as we approach. Misha's face lit up when she saw Matt. Nate stopped speaking when he saw me.

"Ellen!" he exclaimed, wrapping his arms around me. "How's my pulchritudinous girlfriend?"

"I feel dirty with your arms around me." I snorted. "And pulchritudinous? What have you been reading?"

"Genius," he replied, tapping his temple.

I snorted then glanced back at him. I cocked an eyebrow at him when I noticed that he was wearing sunglasses.